


Cough Syrup

by itsjustthunder



Category: The Avengers (2012), Thor - All Media Types, X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Brotherly Affection, Fluff and Smut, Multi, might get dark, will add more characters and relationships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-03-25
Updated: 2013-07-16
Packaged: 2017-12-06 10:25:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 7,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/734603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itsjustthunder/pseuds/itsjustthunder
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Thor's parent's adopted Loki, a mute orphan, simply because he was named after a norse god, like their son. But Thor loves his new little brother more than his parents ever will. Slowly, they learn to communicate, and grow, and go out into the world together. They acquire many strange acquaintances along the way. Thor and this rag-tag assemble of friends try to protect small, silent Loki, but sometimes he is the one to save them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Doors Unlocked and Open

**Author's Note:**

> Apologies for the terrible summary.  
> Also, this is my first time posting work, feedback is appreciated!

Only Odin would adopt a child based solely on his name.  
    “Is it more money you want? Because we can provide that. I promise that this boy will be well taken care of, with a very high standard of living.” He was already striding towards the social worker’s office, with his wife and the social worker hurrying after.  
    “Dear… “ Frigga trailed off.  
    “Sir,” called the social worker, “I don’t think you understand.” Odin stopped and turned, an exasperated look on his face.  
    “What is there to understand? I thought you people just gave kids away.”  
    The social worker appeared taken aback by that, but quickly continued.  
    “This boy, he was removed from his home and placed with us because his mother was an alcoholic, and bipolar, and his father was a paranoid schizophrenic who was not deemed by the state as able to take care of a child. This isn’t the first child the state has taken from their care. Loki… He’s a very sweet child, but I don’t think you know what you’d be getting into with him. Even if you can ‘provide for him’, are you really ready to raise a mute, slightly traumatized 4-year-old, who could also potentially be bipolar and schizophrenic? Along with your older son? Can you really give him the care he needs?”  
    Frigga spoke from behind them both.  
    “I believe I can. I think I have done right in my raising Thor, and this boy just needs love from a supporting family. And we have been cleared by the state to adopt an older child. I think he would do well with us.”  
    “And look at the names, for god’s sake!’ Odin cried, “It’s fate. We have a son named Thor, and someone else names this boy Loki. They go together.”

Some how, the adoption was approved. 

*****

They brought him home on a wet spring day. Thor hadn’t been allowed to go with his parents on the high-speed train to New York to meet his new little brother, so he had sat by the window all day, watching the rain and trying to read the book on sign language his mother had gotten him. He was counting the hours until their chauffeur would take him to the station. After teaching himself how to say “Hello my name is Thor,” he gave up and instead decided to see how many pillows he could stack until they fell over, and then if he could ride the pillows down the stairs. This wild sled ride resulted in a split lip and a black eye and a trip to be bandaged up by Darcy, his kindly nurse. 

And so, Thor came to meet Loki with a black eye, a split lip, and widest grin that had ever shown upon a 7-year-old’s face. 

It didn’t help that every time he smiled wider, his lip began to bleed more. 

*****

Loki’s day had been much the opposite from Thor’s, except in the fact that he too watched the rain. With help from the social worker, he had packed up his few belongings, gotten in the car, and drove to the station. There he had been greeted by a loud new-father, and a new-mother that touched him too much. After much talking with his social worker by his new-parents, he had been bundled onto the train, small package in tow. In their private car, his new-parents had tried to ask him questions. He had nothing to say in response, even if he could say. So instead he stared out at the rain. 

*****

When Thor arrived on the platform with Darcy and Heimdall, he was practically bursting with excitement and anticipation. A little brother! He had told his papa that he wanted a little brother. His mama had told him something about ‘mama can’t make babies,’ and ‘you grew in a birthmother, not in mama,’ but then his papa had talked to his mama about something called ‘adoption’, and then they went and go him a little brother. Who was coming. Today.

*****

When the train stopped, Loki was shaken out of his staring. He instead looked around the car as is seeing it for the first time. His new-mother reached her hand down, like she wanted him to take it, but he slid off the seat, parcel in hand, and stood, waiting for them to tell him what to do. His new-father laughed oh he’s a cold little one and began to walk away. New-mother followed, beckoning him after her. Slowly, he exited the car behind them, holding on to the bag for dear life, eyes taking in everything. 

*****

When Thor saw his parents coming off the train he broke free of Darcy’s restrictive hold on his shoulder, and ran towards them. But he didn’t see his new brother. Then, he spotted a tiny boy behind them, his long black hair nearly covering his eyes, a shabby green bag clutched in his small hands. He looked too small to be already 4, like his parents had told him the boy was. He looked up, and saw Thor running towards him. At first he looked terrified. But then, as Thor skidded to a stop in front of him, he simply looked wary.  
“Hi Loki!” he exclaimed. “I’m Thor, your new brother.”

*****

A soon as Loki stepped carefully on to the platform, he saw a blond boy rocketing towards him. He began to step back; afraid this boy would it him. But instead, he stopped right in front of where Loki had stopped walking, and grinned at him. Then, the blonde spoke. Not just with his mouth, like his new-parents, but with his hands too, like his social worker had been teaching him.  
“Hi Loki!” Loki startled at the sound of his name. “I’m Thor, your new brother.”  
Loki couldn’t help but give a small smile in return.


	2. Mountains Beyond Mountains

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Loki sees his new home.

    Thor took Loki’s hand and led him to their waiting car.   
    “This is Heimdall.” He pointed to the tall man holding the door for the two boys. “He’s gonna drive us home because Mama and Papa took the little fast car here with only two seats.” He climbed into the backseat of the car, and then turned to help Loki, who was having difficulty because of his unwieldy bundle. When his new little brother was safely seated next to him, (in the middle, because Heimdall said that was the best of the little ones) Thor turned and pointed to his nurse, who was also sitting in the back with them.  
    “This is Darcy. She takes care of me and now she’s gonna take care of you.”  
    Darcy stuck her hand out.   
    “Hello Loki,” she said. Loki just stared at her outstretched hand. “Well,” Darcy retracted her hand, “We’ll have to teach you some manners if you’re going to be a Odinson. The shareholders would love seeing you being all cute and polite in public, a shining example of the family.” Loki nodded. She turned away from them, taking out her phone.

*****

    The rest of the ride consisted of Thor pointing out landmarks and points of interest on the way to their house, and Loki nodding in agreement.   
    “This is our city, where papa goes everyday to work. There’s his office building.” Thor gestured at a huge steel and glass skyscraper towering over the city blocks. “He brought me to work with him once, but it was boring.” They were nearing the edge of the city now, and the buildings were getting smaller, moving from towering offices to brick townhouses. Thor pointed to one of these. “That’s where my friend Sif lives. She goes to my school. We play warriors during recess like in her brother Hogun’s computer games. Fandral said that she can’t be a warrior because she’s a girl, that she had to be the princess, but then she hit him with her stick and he said she could play.”   
    They were out of the city now, passing over a bridge. Loki craned his neck to see the river that ran below it. He wondered if there were whales in the river. He had seen a picture of a whale once, in a book about water, and he liked to imagine whales like that one jumping out of the river under them, spraying the car with water. Thor noticed him looking. “This is the Bifrost River, but you can’t swim in it. Papa says it has pollution.” They were now over the river, in the suburbs. The car rolled past what appeared to be a large gated mansion. The gate bore the name ‘Ultor Academy’ over a curling insignia, and some words in Latin. Thor spoke again. “That’s the school where I’m gonna go when I’m all grown up and am a teenager.” He seemed to be struck by a thought. “You can go too!” Loki liked this idea.   
Soon, they were in what appeared to be the privileged part of town. The car passed huge house after huge house, each situated on sprawling grounds. Some of their majesty was lost in the pouring rain. Thor knew some of the owners of the mansions, and told Loki about them. 

    “That’s where the Starks live. Mr. Stark works with papa. He invents things, and papa’s company sells them. He has a kid named Tony who’s the same age as you. That’s where the Xavier’s live. The dad’s really mean. He yells me if I walk on their lawn. Their kid Charles is nice but he’s no fun to play with because he always wants to read instead of play ball. But he makes up the best stories. He’s a year younger than me.”

    Heimdall stopped the car in front of an opulent, imposing gate. There was a Viking dragonhead in the middle of it. He got out, and punched in a code on a keypad, then got back in and drove through as the gate swung in. As they drove up the gravel drive, Loki caught the first sight of what was to be his home. It was big. Very, very big. Bigger even than the other houses on the road.   
They pulled to the front door, and Thor pushed his door open and jumped out. He turned to Loki and beckoned him to follow. Loki pushed himself off the seat and followed his new-brother up the front steps to the door. Thor couldn’t open the door himself, so they had to wait for Heimdall and Darcy to reach them to go in. Thor immediately raced up the stairs, shouting “Come on, I’ll show you your room!” 

    Loki followed more slowly, looking around his new home. There were big pictures on the wall, pictures of this family’s ancestors, he guessed. That was what people in books always had on their walls. When he arrived in the upstairs hallway, Thor was nowhere in sight. Then he popped his blonde head out of a door. “This is your room! We didn’t know what’d you like, so I just put cool stuff in here.” Loki stepped in to the room. There was a huge bed in the center, with a deep teal bedspread on. Next to the bed was a small table, and along the wall was a low and wide bookcase. Across from the bed a door led to a white and gold bathroom. “The bathroom connects our two rooms,” Thor proclaimed. “Here, put your stuff on the bed and I’ll show you.” Loki reached up and placed up bag on the bed, then followed Thor through the next door. Thor’s room was a mess, with toys and clothes everywhere. His bed was the same as Loki’s, with a brilliant blue bedspread. Just as Loki finished taking it all in, Thor grabbed his hand and pulled him back into the hall. “Let’s see the rest of the house!” 

*****

    They spent the rest of the day on the house tour, and nearly missed dinner, on account of them being in the secret tunnel. After dinner, Figga proclaimed that all of Loki’s belongings needed to be disinfected, and breezed up to him room to retrieve them. Loki ran after her, and was just able to rescue his stuffed bird from the washing machine. However, this laundry spree left him with nothing to sleep in, so Thor gave him his favorite Batman shirt to wear. Frigga tucked them both into bed, and told them goodnight. Thor waited until he thought Loki was asleep, and then took his pillow and blanket through the bathroom and curled up on Loki’s floor, which was where Loki found him sprawled the next morning, limbs flung everywhere.


	3. A Hopeful Transmission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loki makes a new friend.

    A week after Loki joined them, Thor had to start school again. He had been on vacation, but now he returned to his prestigious grammar school in the city. Odin was away on business, so Loki and Frigga helped him ready his uniform and belongings. After he was all dressed and ready, he stood before them in his bedroom, pulling at the blazer he wore, embezzled with the school’s shield, an eagle with spread wings.  
    “How does he look?” Frigga questioned Loki.  
 _Silly _, Loki responded. Thor had taught him this word from his sign language book when he told his little brother about the uniform.__  
    “Well I think he looks handsome,” Frigga continued, showing him the sign for handsome.  
    Loki deliberated. _Silly-Handsome _He decided.  
    “Well regardless of his looks, we still have to get him school.”  
    They packed in to the car and Heimdall drove them into the city to Thor’s school, an old brownstone with an unusually large backyard. Thor climbed out, grabbed his satchel, and turned and waved to his mother and bother in the car. Frigga waved back with a gentle smile, Loki’s small hand waved furiously. __

____After they had seen Thor off, Frigga turned to Heimdall.  
“Take us to the shopping district, will you? Loki needs some new clothes.” After it had been discovered that his possessions consisted of 3 shirts, 2 pairs of pants, an oversized man’s flannel shirt, a copy of The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Animals, Birds and Fish of North America, and a stuffed bird, Loki had been mostly wearing a combination of Thor’s old clothes, (which were still comically large on him) and the Batman shirt. He still hadn’t put his few clothes in the dresser in his room, and the book sat on the side table, as if he expected to leave soon. He would sometimes sign to Frigga and Thor, but never to Odin. He seemed wary around the servants, and would stay very close to Thor at all times, as if he was a duckling who had imprinted on the first creature he saw. But Thor handled the responsibility well, leading Loki around, teaching his little duckling ‘Thor’s version of the world’, which involved dragons and quests that Loki was only to happy to go on. _ _ _ _

____*****_ _ _ _

____When Frigga and Loki returned home from shopping for lunch, Frigga sent Loki off with Darcy while she looked for a tutor for him, telling him to ‘show Darcy your new clothes.’ Shyly, Loki showed off his new pants, shirts, and Batman sweatshirt. However, he soon grew hungry, and was stuck with the dilemma of deciding between going hungry and communicating with Darcy. Luckily, his stomach rumbled at that moment, and with an exclamation of “Oh, you must be hungry, it’s almost past lunch,” she led him down to the kitchen._ _ _ _

____They decided to eat outside, because it was “such a lovely day.” After they had finished, Darcy encouraged Loki to ‘go play,’ then promptly took out her Cosmo and began to read in a lawn chair. Loki wandered back through the large yard, to the flower garden. He walked up and down the brick paths, naming all the butterflies. Pieris rapae, Danaus plexippus, they’re migrating early. He followed a little irrigation steam to a small, clear pool. Near the pool were some dead leaves that had survived the winter, which he made into boats and set them sail on the little lake. After his fleet had all taken off, Loki turned to continue exploring. He found a shaded path leading to a small gate. After debating weather or not to go through, curiosity got the better of him, and he pushed though to the other side._ _ _ _

_____Beyond the gate was another yard, or maybe it was simply more of the other back yard, he couldn’t tell. But this yard had significantly less flowers that the one he can come from. There a path led to a gazebo. Loki followed it, and peered inside. It looked nice. He continued inside and sat on one of the plush couches that filled the circular room. He was listening to the sounds of birds when suddenly a clear high voice rang out from behind him.  
    “Who’s this?” Loki whirled to face the source of the sound. A small boy, older than him, with a huge book in his hand, stood in the doorway. He looked quizzically at Loki for a moment, and then his face cleared.  
    “Ah, you must be my new neighbor, the new Odinson, the one who can’t talk, correct?” He had a slight accent. Loki nodded. “Well, I’m Charles. Nice to meet you. Mother sent me out here because she said I needed some fresh air, seeing as I’m sick.” He coughed as if to prove a point. “So I came out here to read. I could read out loud if you want.” Loki nodded again. There was something very kind about this boy, and he immediately trusted him. “I’m reading ‘The Hobbit,’” Charles continued, “It’s very good.” He sat down next to Loki and began to read to him. _ _ _

____*****_ _ _ _

_____They stayed like that the rest of the afternoon, until Charles’s mum called him for tea. Then Charles turned to Loki and said, “Well, best be getting you home.” They walked back through the yards, to where Darcy lay sleeping on a lawn chair. “Ms. Darcy?” Charles startled her awake. “I’ve found your charge in my yard an brought him back to you.”  
“Why thank you Charles,” Darcy responded. “Come on Loki, your brother’s home.”  
As Charles walked back to his house, he turned and waved to Loki. From having no one but a stuffed magpie, Loki had now acquired a new-brother and a new-friend in rapid succession. He was beginning to like this new life._ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like young Loki and young Charles Xavier would get along. they should be friends.  
> also, mystique and Jouten!Loki should get together and talk about their blue feelings and learn to accept themselves. awww.


	4. People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loki learns. Tyr and Garm from Journey into Mystery guest star. Loki has friends.

     They got a Loki a tutor two weeks before Thor’s school got out for the summer. The man’s name was Tyr. He was tall, and built like a brick wall. This, along with his long hair and deep voice, enforced his no nonsense nature. At first, Loki refused to come down the stairs and talk to him. So Tyr simply sat at the bottom the steps for three hours, talking to Loki. He told him about how he had fought in a great war, but had gotten blown up, and had been in a coma for four days, before waking up to discover he had lost the ability to hear. He continued to explain to Loki how he learned sign language, and decided to become a tutor. He said, with a wink, it brought him more money than teaching would. He talked about his dog, and his brothers, and explained that if Loki couldn’t talk, it wouldn’t matter, because he couldn’t hear anyway. With each story, Loki slid down a step. By the time Tyr told him that he and Loki could help each communicate, as one could talk, and the other could hear, and they could fill in the gaps for each other, Loki was sitting next to him on the bottom step.   
     “Would you like to meet Garm?” Tyr asked him. “She’s sleeping in my car.” Loki nodded. Tyr led him out to the circular drive, where his car was parked. In the back seat a huge, almost wolf-like dog was asleep. When Tyr opened the door, she raised her head to regard the two who stood before her. Loki scampered to hide behind Tyr’s legs.   
     “Oh, don’t you worry about old Gram here. She won’t hurt you. She may be big and strong, but she knows who’s good and bad. You can pet her if you like.” Loki tentatively stretched out one small hand, and rested it on Garm’s wet nose. She blinked at him, and then reached out a long tongue and licked his hand. Loki giggled. Tyr startled. It was the first sound he had heard the boy make, and he wasn’t prepared for his strange, cut-off laugh. But then he grinned.   
     “Would you like to bring her inside for your lesson?’ he asked. Looking up at him, Loki nodded. So, Tyr spent his first session teaching the adopted son of one of the cities most powerful business men sitting on the floor of their drawing room, with his giant dog, teaching him the sign language for ‘dog’ ‘pet’ and ‘lick’. He taught Loki Garm’s name sign, a snap ending in the letter G. He had taught her to respond to it, as well as the sound of her name. He then had to explain what a name sign was (the very first word he had taught Loki was ‘what’, in case he had any questions.) 

*****

     When Thor returned, Tyr had to repeat all he taught Loki to Thor, so they would be on the same level. Loki was very eager to help with this, and kept repeating the letter T with various words connected to it. 

*****

     That weekend, Loki had a day off from lessons, but Thor was at his friend Fandral’s house. So he wandered around the house, bird in tow. He found himself in the library, surrounded by books. At first, he simply sat and looked at books on the shelves, not daring to touch any. But then he spotted a book propped open on a stand, and pulled a stool over to reach it. The book was full of glorious illustrations of elves and men and forests and a great tree with worlds in its branches. Then, a page depicting a tall elf conversing with a man reminded him of the story that the boy in the garden, Charles, had been reading to him. He never got to hear the ending. Loki hopped down from his stool, reading forgotten, and scampered off to find Darcy. 

*****

     Darcy was in the kitchen, gossiping with the cook. Not wanting to interact with both at once, Loki went in search of Frigga. She was in the T.V. room, watching a show that she quickly turned off when Loki came in.  
     “Hello dear,” she beckoned him over to her. “What are you up to today?”

     _C H A R L E S ? _Loki asked.  
     “Oh, would you like to go over to the Xavier’s?” Frigga asked. She had learned from Darcy of Loki’s new friend. Loki nodded.   
     “Alright, get your shoes and coat, and we’ll go see if they’re home.” She stood and began walking towards the entryway with him. “I haven’t been to see Sharon in too long,” She mused.__

__*****_ _

__When they arrived at the Xavier’s, a blond, stately woman opened the door.  
     “Frigga!” she exclaimed, “Oh it has been to long, do come in, would you like some tea?”  
     “Ah, hello Sharon, So good to see you again. This is my son Loki, he wanted to see Charles.”   
     “Charles!” Sharon called. There was a distant thump, and a ‘coming mother!’ Sharon led Frigga into their sitting room, saying “You know we were thinking of adopting a child too, I’ve always wanted a girl…” as Charles came around the corner.   
     “Loki!” He exclaimed, and then rushed forward to hug his friend. Loki was a bit taken aback by this gesture, but soon retuned the hug. Charles took his hand and began to lead him through the house. “I’m so glad you’re here! I can show you my room, and my books and everything.” Suddenly he turned to Loki, “Can you read?” he asked. Loki started to nod, but then shook his head. “I’ve been trying to learn sign language, but it might be a bit hard for us to communicate. Ah, well, I can teach you. We can read together.”   
And so they did._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The titles of the chapters so far are song titles. I felt that each song sort of goes with the overall feel of the chapter.  
> They are:  
> Doors Unlocked and Open, by Death Cab for Cutie  
> The Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains), by Arcade Fire  
> A Hopeful Transmission, by Coldplay  
> People, by AWOLNATION
> 
> Thank you to everyone who has left comments and Kudos. I got more kudos than straight up porn. wooooo!


	5. Don't Carry It All

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nightmare. Memories.

     Loki has nightmares. They are confusing things, dark and wild, scattered images over the sound of breaking glass. He thrashes in his sleep, tossing and turning and making strangled little noises in his throat. At first, when Thor was sleeping on his floor, he would kick and punch, surprisingly strong for someone his age and size, if Thor even so much as sat on his bed. But one night, in the depths of his terror and confusion, Loki heard a voice calling to him, as if from very far away. It sounded familiar, and he struggled towards it, clawing his way to the surface, until he awoke, shaking, to find Thor regarding him from the far end of his bed.  
     “You were having a bad dream,” he whispered. “Do you want to snuggle? That always makes my bad dreams go away.” He held out his arms. Hesitantly, Loki crawled into them.  
The next night Thor was moved from the floor and into his brother’s bed to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't Carry it All, by the Decemberists


	6. Sloom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loki's birthday, meeting new people.

     The first time Loki meets Thor’s friends is his 5th birthday. They don’t know this, but he does. His old-mother told him he was born on the longest day of the year, and on the longest day of this year, Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg and Sif came home with Thor after his last day of school.      Everyday when he returned home, Thor would come to find Loki with his tutor, give him a hug, and wander off to go eat as much as possible. He was a growing boy after all. But when his friends returned to his house with him, instead of immediately finding his brother, Thor led his friends out to the back yard.  
     “Wait here,” he told them, “you need to meet my little brother.”  
     “I didn’t know you had a brother,” Sif looked around, as if the brother would simply appear out of the air.  
     “I have a little sister. She likes horses, and she makes me play dolls with her,” Fandral announced as if this was the worst thing in the world.  
     “Loki’s a boy, and he plays warriors with me,” Thor was very proud of teaching his little brother this game he and his friends played. “I’ll go get him.” He turned and ran into the house.  
     When Thor returned, he was leading a timid Loki behind him. He stopped when he got to his friends sitting on the grass, and pushed his brother in front of him.  
     “This is Loki, my new little brother. Loki, this is Sif, Fandral, Volstagg, and Hogun. They’re my very best friends, and they go to my school.” Loki thought these older boys and girl might be nice, but Charles would always be his very best friend. Sif waved at him.  
     “Hello Loki!” she enthused. Loki gave her a shy smile. He turned to Thor.  
     _Today is my birthday. _he told him. Thor looked surprised. His friends did too.__  
     “Really?” He asked. Loki nodded. Thor scooped him up in a hug. “Happy birthday, little brother!” he exclaimed. Fandral, perplexed by this interaction, spoke up from the grass.  
     “What did he say? Can he not talk or something?” he asked, loudly. Thor grinned.  
     “He said today’s his birthday,” he told them. “He can’t talk, but I can tell you what he says.” Volstagg stood, with some difficulty, and came over and enveloped Loki in a bear hug.  
     “Happy Birthday, little Loki!” He let go as Sif spoke.  
     “I think because he’s so small, he can be the princess in our game,” she declared. “His hair is almost long enough for it.”  
     Loki refused to let anyone cut his hair.  
     The other three stood to join Thor and Volstagg around Loki.  
     “Loki, you be the princess, and we’ll be your knights,” Fandral instructed. “That big rock over there can be your castle.” He pointed to a decorative boulder by the edge of Frigga’s garden. Loki obediently walked over and sat down. However, he soon grew tired of simply sitting and watching his brother and friends hit each other with sticks, and he wandered over to Thor.  
     _Can I play? _  
“You are playing,” Thor told him. “You’re the princess.” This satisfied Loki for some time, but he soon grew restless. He began to wander away again, this time towards the neighbor’s house. Now that he had remembered his birthday, he wanted to share it with Charles.__

______*****  
     Charles was out reading again. He looked up when Loki came crashing through his garden.  
     “Hullo Loki!” he called. “I’m reading about sign language so I can talk with you, instead of just having to guess what you’re saying. I think it’s important to be able communicate with your best friends and neighbors.” This statement made Loki grin and rush over o him. Charles thought they were best friends too! He didn’t need to be a princess and sit on a dumb rock, he could read and play with Charles.  
     _It’s my birthday. _he explained, hoping the other boy would understand. It took him a few moments, and much page turning, but he soon looked up in comprehension.  
     “Birthday! Yours?” he asked. Loki nodded. Charles pulled him in for his third birthday hug of the day, this one significantly less bone crushing, as Charles was much slighter than Volstagg and his brother. __

___________*****_  
     Loki spent the rest of his birthday, the longest day of the year, learning and talking to his best friend. Thor didn’t come looking for him. When Loki wandered back for dinner, him and his friends had gone inside. They hadn’t noticed his absence.  
     But that night, after Frigga had tucked the boys into their respective beds, and Thor had taken his pillow and blanket to his brother’s, Loki had refused to turn over and acknowledge him.  
     “Loki?” Thor prodded his shoulder. “I’m here to keep you company while you sleep.” Loki rolled over, sat up, and stared hard at him.  
     _Why didn’t you find me? _he asked, hands flying. Thor made him repeat it twice. Then, he shrugged.  
     “I’m sorry.” He climbed into bed behind his brother, and hugged him. “I promise not to do it again.” __

______________*****  
     The next day, Tyr brought a suspicious package to their lesson.  
     “I heard yesterday was your birthday,” he winked, setting down the present. Loki wearily opened it. A ball of fur barreled out, bowling him over.  
     “Garm’s had pups,” Tyr explained. “Thought you might like one, seeing how much you like her.”_ _

________*****  
     Loki named the dog Thori. Everyone cooed over how sweet he was, naming his dog after his brother._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to take so long to update, things have been a bit crazy in my life recently.  
> Title is the Of Monsters and Men song. Very good.  
> Thori is the name of Kid Loki's dog in Journey Into Mystery, a very good comic.


	7. Don't Stop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new character appeared!

     The summer passed. Loki played with his dog and his brother. He learned from his tutor and avoided his brother’s friends. He went to Charles’ house every chance he got, and met the newest Xavier child. 

     “Well,” Sharon had told Frigga, “We saw happy your children were, and we thought that Charles would benefit from a sibling.” They had thought that if Odin and Frigga, who always knew what was in fashion at the moment, had adopted a son, then they too would ‘rescue a child from the plight of the foster care system.’ Raven was a beautiful girl, a year younger than Loki, with three times the energy. She flitted about the Xavier’s great house, disrupting Charles’ quiet routines. But he loved his little sister, and often invited her to play with him and Loki. They build cities together out of blocks, and Raven would drag the boys outside to be in the summer sunlight. There they would be joined by Thor, if his friends weren’t around, to enjoy their huge back yards. 

     There was another house on their road of mansions, but Loki had never met the inhabitants. A wrought iron gate bearing the name ‘Stark’ closed off the long drive. Unlike Loki’s family or the Xavier’s, there was no fancy crest decorating it. Odin tried to explain to Thor once that this was because the Starks were ‘new money,’ and their family didn’t come from those powerful enough to need a coat of arms. 

     Ever since Thor had told him the Stark’s child was his age, Loki has been curious about the inhabitants of the house.  
     _Can I meet them? _he asked new-parents as they drove past the house one day.  
     “Maybe sometime,” Frigga responded noncommittally. __

__But he never saw the family. Cars would come and go, and he knew that the father of the family worked for his new-father, but he still never saw them. So, he decided to take action. One day, when the four of them were enjoying the late afternoon in the garden, Loki told the others of his desire to meet these mysterious neighbors.  
     _We go to their house and ring the door and then they have to come out. ___  
Thor was enthusiastic, Charles agreed, but Raven expressed her reservations.  
     “We gotta bring Darcy incase they’re evil, ok?”  
     The boys agreed, and went to retrieve their nanny, who had somehow ended up being in charge of all the neighborhood children, from where she was tanning and listening to her iPod. The 5 of them trooped down the street to the imposing gate of the Stark’s estate. Then, a problem presented itself. The gate stood between them and their destination.  
     “We could climb over it,” Suggested Thor.  
     “Or we could fly!” exclaimed Raven.  
     Loki tied to fit himself through the bars of the gate.  
     “Or we could try the buzzer,” Darcy found Charles’ idea the most useful, and pressed the intercom.  
     “Please state your name and business,” came a voice with an upper-class English accent through the speaker.  
     “Darcy, your neighbor’s nanny. I have all the other kids who live on this street with me, and they want to know if Tony can come out and play with them.” The others chorused a ‘hello’ to help their cause.  
     “I will find the young master, and see if his parents approve,” the voice responded. “Please wait just a few moments.”  
     They waited.  
     Presently, the gate swung silently inwards, and, approaching from far off, they could see two figures, one tall and one child-sized. As they came closer, the taller one seemed to fit the voice that had come through the intercom, a man in a well-tailored suit, with graying hair. The boy at his side had the appearance of one whose parents try to keep him presentable, but fail. Tony Stark had tousled brown hair that fell in his eyes, and was wearing a baggy tee shirt, two sizes too big. He bounced as he walked. When the man and boy arrived at where the others were standing, the man stuck out his hand to Darcy.  
     “Hello, my name is Jarvis, I’m the Stark’s butler and Master Tony’s caretaker.”  
     “Darcy,” she replied hastily, startled by his formal manner. “and this is Loki and Thor, Frigga and Odin’s children, and Charles and Raven, the Xavier’s children.” She pointed to each of them in turn. Loki, remembering what Darcy had told him about meeting people, stuck out his hand to Tony, who hugged him.  
     “Hi I’m Tony I live here and you live next door but I’ve never met you and now you’re here so now I can meet you and we can play.” He said, all in a rush. Loki, looking a bit traumatized by this onslaught, hugged back cautiously. Then Tony pulled away, and looked at the rest of the assembled children.  
     “Hi!” he waved. Thor, just as enthusiastic waved back. Loki turned to Thor, asking him to translate.  
     _Hello Tony _he said. As Thor was about tell Tony, ‘Loki says…’, Tony perked up.__  
     “Oh,” he said, “Are you deaf? My dad’s friend Matt is blind, which is like the opposite of being deaf, but I learned sign language cuz it seemed cool, and I don’t go to school till the fall.”  
     _I’m mute. _Loki told him.__  
     “Ok.” Tony replied uncharacteristically terse. Darcy cut in, “Would you all like to go back to the yard to play?”  
     Jarvis turned to Tony, “Be sure to be to be back by dinner.”  
     “Alright!” Tony replied.  
     Darcy gathered her charges, and the six of them returned back to the backyards to play for the rest of the afternoon. And for the rest of the summer, really. The five neighbor kids made the connected yards their kingdom. Later, they would refer to themselves as ‘The Children of People who Live in Mansions,’ and though they were all so different, the friendships they made that long summer lasted. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm finally on summer vacation, so I can now update much more frequently.  
> Title is the Foster the People song.  
> I feel like young Tony Stark would learn other languages in his free time. He doesn't really have any friends before this.


	8. Flatland

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> why do bad thing happen to good people?  
> bad things happen to good people because I'm an evil author.

     School started, in the fall. And it, as school is bound to do, pulled all but the youngest of they’re merry band from the carelessness of play to structure of learning. Thor and Charles were in second grade, and Loki and Tony in kindergarten. However, they at first sent Loki to a school for deaf children, instead of to the other’s suburban private school. Tyr had suggested it, citing the fact that Loki could communicate with the other children in sign language, and thus further his schooling experience. Loki hated his school. After Thanksgiving break, he refused to go back. Eventually, Frigga gave in. When they were older, Thor once asked Loki why.  
     _because, _he replied _it was to quiet. _br / >____      “That’s not true,” Thor cocked his head to the side, awaiting a real answer.  
     _I wanted to go to school with you, ok? ___  
Thor grinned.  
     _and charles and tony. you’re not that special. ___  
So, Loki switched schools in the middle of the year, joining the others on the campus of low brick buildings that housed the school. Tony was in his class, and acted as his interpreter. Though, as Loki moved up through the school, he became more self-sufficient, and more adept at making his point, through unconventional methods. Though, the school did often place him in the classes of teachers who had some knowledge of sign language. It was that kind of school. They wore uniforms. Chauffeurs drove them to school. The buildings had ivy growing on the sides. After 5th grade, Thor begged his mother to let him attend the local public school. She told him that he would have to at least stay though the end of the lower school, and then they would ‘reconsider’ high school.  
     It was that same year when disaster struck their quiet lives.  
*****  
     The fateful day started as many others did. Loki was home sick, and Darcy was watching him. He really wasn’t that sick, but Frigga decided it was ok to miss a day of 3rd grade over a cold. It was pouring rain, and Thor had soccer practice. He arrived home with Heimdal, covered with mud, hair a wild array (he had stopped cutting it to show solidarity with Loki’s tresses). Loki was sitting upside down on the couch, feet stuck over the back, head resting on Thori, who was curled up on the floor. The (now old and maybe a bit ripped) Batman shirt threatened to fall over his eyes. Tissues were spread around them. Darcy was sitting in a chair, texting. They were watching Star Trek. As Thor walked past, Loki held up his hand in Vulcan salute. _live long and prosper ___  
Thor responded in kind before heading to the kitchen to obtain huge amounts of food, and returned to his brother in the living room. He sat beside Thori on the floor, and silently handed Loki a bag of M &M’s without removing his eyes from the TV. They spent the rest of the afternoon in this manner, until Odin returned home to shoo Thor up to his room to do work, while Frigga cooed over Loki’s illness. When Thor returned after just 15 minutes, his father grumbled about ‘why pay for school when they don’t even give you any work,’ which just turned into an argument over where Thor would go to high school. Then Frigga called them all in for dinner.  
     They didn’t learn of it until that evening. The boys were back on the couch, with Thor trying to sign out the opening of the next episode of Star Trek, and Loki drifting asleep on his shoulder. He was awoken by the shrieking of the telephone. Frigga answered. They didn’t pay attention until she began to raise her voice.  
     “Sharon, what is it? I can’t understand you.”  
     then: “Oh my god.”  
     then: “I’m so sorry.”  
     then: “What can we do? How long until…?”  
     then: “Yes, we’ll be there.” 

_She hung up the phone, and slowly turned to the boys who were now watching her intently, concerned looks on their faces._  
     _what’s the matter? __  
“What’s happened?”  
     “There’s been an accident. All this rain…”_

    Brian Xaiver was dead. Charles had been in surgery for 3 hours, his spine shattered. They had been driving home when the car skidded off the road into oncoming traffic. The other driver was uninjured. Sharon and Raven had been at home, waiting for them. A passer-by had called 911, but no one called Sharon until an hour later. She had called Frigga when things had settled down at the hospital and all there was left to do was wait. It became clear that keeping Raven there was a bad idea all around. Frigga went with Heimdal to pick her up and take her home to spend the night with them. They set her up a mattress on the floor of Loki’s room (which really belonged to both boys). Nobody slept that night. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well there you go. I don't update forever (super sorry about that, I was away with a pack of boys in the mountains, then doing service in West Virginia then I got sucked into the Star Trek fandom) then i come back with this chapter. Please don't hate me. <3
> 
> title is from Arcade Fire again.


	9. B4 3D

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A visit to the hospital.  
> sorry everybody.

     The following day, with purple rings under his eyes, Loki clutched his well worn stuffed bird to his chest and padded through the morning semi-darkness to his parents’ bedroom. He cracked the door and walked to where Frigga lay asleep. He reached out hesitantly, tapped her one the shoulder, then jumped back when she rolled to face him and opened her eyes.  
     _Can we go see Charles now? _he asked.__  
     “In a little bit, sweetie, just let me wake up first,” Frigga sighed.  
     Loki returned to his room, where Raven had finally dozed off on her bed, limbs spread everywhere. Thor was nowhere to be seen, the nest he had created on the bed abandoned. This concerned Loki, who was used to his brother sleeping in far past him. He quickly got dressed in the dark, and went down to look for his brother. Thor was down in the kitchen, absent-mindedly eating cereal. There was a stack of comics next to him.  
     “Mornin’ Loki,” came his brother’s sleepy slurred voice. “Want some cereal?” he offered up the box. Loki walked around his chair to retrieve a bowl and spoon. Ask he poured himself some, he looked questioningly at the comics.  
     _Why do you have so many comics? _  
“They’re for Charles. When you get sick or hurt or whatever and you have to spend forever in the hospital, it’s nice to have something to read. And maybe he won’t be able to focus on big words and small print, so I’m bringing him comics and also some movies.” He looked at Loki as if daring his brother to challenge his logic. Loki nodded slowly. “Do you think Charles likes Star Trek?” Thor asked. Loki considered. _Yes. Space is the best. _____

___________*****_  
     Even though he had a medical file the size of an encyclopedia in their doctor’s office, Loki had never been to the hospital in the city before. Frigga had always managed to treat his (many) ailments at home. The white and the smell and the lights made him feel very, very small and just a little bit scared. It struck him that this was where people died. But he remembered what he was here for, and soldiered on.  
     After surgery yesterday, Charles had slept most of the night in the intensive care unit, and now the anesthesia was wearing off. He had opened his eyes to his haggard-looking mother, and his morning had really just gone down hill from there. The doctor’s words had barely registered. He didn’t even cry when they told him of his father’s death, just said ‘oh,’ and moved on. After they had all left, he had just lay there, ignoring the breakfast they had left for him, and sobbed. Once he had decided this was his reality now, and he better be getting used to it, he sat up, wiped his eyes, and tried to adjust to the lack of feeling below his waist.  
     It was a welcomed relief when his neighbors showed up in the afternoon. Sharon was fast asleep on the chair in the room after her long night, but Charles was restless. He heard a soft knock on the door and called ‘come in!’  
     The boys were quite, slow in their movements, cautious. It was a more pronounced change in Thor’s demeanor, but there was a subtle shift in how Loki acted around his friend too. They asked how he was feeling (drugged up) and gave him their gifts of comics and movies. He put them on his bedside table and then forgot about them. They expressed sympathy for his father (‘sorry about your dad, he was a good guy’). They eventually lapsed into silence. It was awkward.  
     It was Loki who broke the tension, in his own way. He moved from his place by his mother and brother to the side of his friend’s bed, selected a comic from the stack, and climbed onto the edge of the bed, carefully maneuvering his small frame to avoid jostling Charles. The bed was large; being rich did have its perks for the Xaviers, but still Charles got a face-full of Loki’s black ponytail. When he was situated, Loki placed the comic before Charles, and demanded, _read to me, please. _Charles seemed a bit startled, but then picked it up and began to read. Thor drifted over to the bed too, and Frigga slipped out to get herself some much-needed coffee.  
     It was all so normal, the three of them together. After they finished reading, Thor popped in one of the DVDs they had brought, and they sat and watched in the dark. It was like nothing had changed, but then Loki again noticed the bandages on Charles’s head, and was reminded of what had happened. Then it was like nothing would ever be the same again.__

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> told you I'd update more!  
> title is a song by Architecture in Helsinki, my recommended listening.  
> also, my new-found Star Trek obsession is leaking into this fic, so apologies for that too. It's probably because I'm secretly a 12 year old boy who loves comics and sci-fi, but thats a whole different story.  
> I'm sure my descriptions of anything in any way medical are completely wrong in this fic, but hey, it's my universe, so i can make the rules. :)


End file.
